LAWS(PAT)-2019-7-4

KALAWATI DEVI Vs. UNION OF INDIA

Decided On July 09, 2019
KALAWATI DEVI Appellant
V/S
UNION OF INDIA Respondents

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The present writ petition has been filed for restraining the respondents from making any recovery of the alleged excess payment of family pension made to the petitioner herein as also for directing the respondents to refund a sum of Rs. 1,11,279/- illegally recovered from the account of the petitioner herein.

(2.) The brief facts of the case are that the deceased husband of the petitioner herein Late Dharam Nath Singh was working in the Government of India with effect from 04.03.1964 and had superannuated from his services on 31.07.1997. While working on the post of Senior Auditor and serving in the office of Chief Comptroller of Defence Account (Pension), Allahabad, Uttar Pradesh a pension payment order dated 27th June, 1997 was issued to the husband of the petitioner and the pension was commenced with effect from 01.08.1997. Unfortunately, the husband of the petitioner died on 08.04.2001 whereafter the petitioner had applied for family pension in the prescribed format and thereupon she started getting family pension from the respondent-Bank in Account No. 11632008308. Suddenly, the petitioner received a letter dated 17.02.2008 stating therein that the petitioner was liable to be paid family pension @ of Rs. 3665/- up to 03.07.2004 and thereafter she was to be paid a sum of Rs. 2220/-, however, by mistake the enhanced amount had been paid to her till November, 2005 resulting in excess payment of Rs. 27,921/-, hence a sum of Rs. 2000/- would be deducted each month so that recovery can be made regarding the excess amount paid to the petitioner. Again on 10.08.2018, the petitioner received a letter from the State Bank of India's Centralized Pension Processing Centre, Patna, stating therein that excess pension amounting to Rs. 4,13,958/- has been paid to the petitioner over a period ranging from January, 2008 to the month of July, 2018, hence the same is recoverable, thus, the petitioner was requested to deposit the said amount in the pension account.

(3.) The learned counsel for the petitioner has submitted that the respondent Bank is seeking to recover alleged excess amount of payment made to the petitioner over a period of more than 10 years. In this regard, the learned counsel for the petitioner has referred to the provisions of the Defence Pension Payment Instructions (Defence PPI), 2013, Rule No. 103.2 whereof is reproduced herein below:-